In forming color photographic images, light-sensitive layers containing three of yellow, magenta, and cyan color photographic couplers are imagewise exposed, and processed with a color developer containing a color developing agent. In this process, the couplers undergo a coupling reaction with an oxidation product of an aromatic primary amine to give colored dyes.
Standard processing steps for silver halide color photographic materials generally comprise a color-developing step wherein a color image is formed, a silver-removing step wherein developed silver and undeveloped silver are removed, and a washing and/or image-stabilizing step.
It has been intended to shorten the processing time and, recently, there has been an increasing necessity for shortening the processing time due to the request for shortening time for delivery of finished prints, reducing work in laboratories, and reducing the size and facilitating procedures of processing systems for small-scale laboratories called "mini-laboratories".
Shortening the time for the color-developing step can be attained by properly combining the technique of using those couplers which show as fast a coupling speed as possible, the technique of using those silver halide emulsions which show a rapid developing speed, and the technique of raising the temperature of the color developer.
Shortening the time for the silver-removing step can be attained by decreasing the pH of a bleaching solution and a bleach-fixing solution. Such acceleration of bleaching and fixing by decreasing pH of the bleach-fixing solution is described in "The Theory of the Photographic Process", Chap. 15, E., Bleach-Fix System.
However, acceleration of the bleaching step by decreasing the pH of the bleach-fixing solution involves a problem of deteriorating image quality, since dyes formed from cyan couplers are converted to their leuco form to be decolorized, and do not return to the colored form before completion of the processing (hereinafter this phenomenon being referred to as "color restoration failure"). This causes a decrease in density. After the processing, color restoration gradually proceeds to destroy color balance of the image.
In order to solve this problem, there is the technique of washing color-developed light-sensitive materials with water to remove color developing agent before the bleach-fixing step. However, this technique has defects, in that the number of processing step is increased and that the total processing time is prolonged.
Also, the technique of adding a water-soluble ionic compound containing a polyvalent element to the bleach-fixing bath is proposed in, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,773,510. However, this technique has defects, in that it increases environmental pollution and it fails to fully attain the essential object.
On the other hand, the use of hydroquinones or quinones for the purpose of controlling gradation, preventing fog, and preventing decoloration, and for other purposes, is conventionally known, for example, in Japanese Patent Application (OPI) Nos. 161238/80, 60647/85 and 32034/78 (the term "OPI" as used herein means an "unexamined published application"), West German Patent Application (OLS) Nos. 2,149,789 and 3,320,483, Japanese Patent Application (OPI) Nos. 24141/83 and 2128/71, Japanese Patent Publication Nos. 4934/68, 21249/75, and 3171/85, Japanese Patent Application (OPI) Nos. 106329/74 and 129535/74, British Pat. No. 1,465,081, Japanese Patent Application (OPI) Nos. 129536/74, 134327/74, 110337/75, 156438/75, 6024/76, 9828/76, 14023/76, 65432/77, 128130/77, 146234/77, 146235/77, 9528/78, 55121/78, 139533/78, 24019/79, 25823/79, 29637/79, 70036/79, 97021/79, 133181/79, 43521/80, 95948/80, 5543/81, 83742/81, 85748/81, 87040/81, 109344/81, 153342/81, 112749/82, 176038/82, 136030/83, 72443/84, 75249/84, 83162/84, 101650/84, 180557/87, 60647/85, 189342/84, 191031/84, 55339/85, and 263149/85, Research Disclosure, Vol. 228, No. 2287 (1983), U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,384,658, 2,403,721, 2,728,659, 2,735,765, 3,700,453, 2,675,314, 2,732,300, 2,360,290, etc., with Japanese Patent Application (OPI) Nos. 32034/78, 24141/83, 2128/71, 106329/74, 129535/74, 129536/74, 134327/74 110337/75, 9528/78, 55121/78, 29637/79 and 180557/84 corresponding to U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,198,239, 4,430,425, 3,700,453, 3,960,570, 3,935,016, 3,930,863 and 3,930,866, British Pat. No. 1,446,703, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,121,939, 4,138,259, 4,179,293 and 4,587,210, respectively, and Japanese Patent Application (OPI) No. 153342/81 corresponding to U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,345,024 and 4,501,898 (divisional application).
Generally, however, these compounds are not known to overcome the above-described color restoration failure. Also, since hydroquinones cause color restoration failure when a bleach-fixing solution having a comparatively high pH and being adulterated with a color developer is used in combination therewith, their amounts are proposed to be decreased, as described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application (OPI) No. 60647/85.